Let Hope Light Your Way
by Nanospeed
Summary: The story of Marth and Sheeda. The legend of the War of Darkness.  Fire Emblem 1/3/11/12
1. Prologue I

**Edit September 2010– I posted this story earlier this summer, only to come back and find it gone. So here is a resubmission. Sorry about that.**

I think this story is long overdue. A full story of Marth's adventures and encounters. Based, on:

FE 12 Hero of Light and Shadow

FE 11 Shadow Dragon

FE 3 Mystery of the Emblem / Monshō no Nazo

FE 1 Shadow Dragons and the Blade of Light / Ankoku Ryū to Hikari no Tsurugi

Might include:

FE 2 Gaiden

This area in the future would be used to give a shout-out and thanks to people who reviewed and subscribed to this story.

Now, here we go.

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**Prologue – Prelude of Despair**

"Wake up." A soft voice echoed in the distance, but it soon faded.

"Come on sire!" It was another voice this time, more loud and urgent than the first. More sensations were felt this time, the feel of a cold floor, the sound of occasional thunder in the distance... and a throbbing feeling of pain? The boy stirred, something was definitely not right.

"Marth... please!" It was the soft voice again. He could hear her but it was hard for his body to respond, it was like waking up from a good night sleep. Yet, it was strange because he did not remember going to sleep, much less ending up on the floor.

Slowly, the boy opened his eyes. There was a girl dressed in a white dress, with a design usually used by the royal family. She wore a unique golden tiara and in her hands was a staff with a green jewelled tip. Marth then focused on her familiar face, it was his sister.

"Elice?" He asked, his throat feeling somewhat dry. He somewhat remembered being alone, so why was she here?

"Ah!" Elice said while giving a relieved smile. "You're awake."

"Yes," Marth responded while trying to sit up. He was somewhat successful at first, only to be interrupted by a sharp pain in his leg. "Ugh..." Marth gasped as he fell back.

"You okay?" It was the other voice from earlier. Marth looked back to see the person who caught him. It was a knight in armour, the crest of Altea engraved in blue on his chest plating. This person however, was unrecognizable, with well-groomed hair and a trimmed beard.

"Ye... yes." Marth said as he turned his attention to his leg. There was a lot of a dark liquid which he could only assume was blood soaking his dark blue pants. Why was he injured? What was going on? He looked around suddenly becoming more aware of his surroundings. They were in his room, a room that was once neat and tidy was now littered with debris. There was a hole in the wall as if blasted open. But by what?

"Relax," Elice said as she noticed her brothers confusion. She was using some wood from a broken piece of furniture and ripped bed linens to create a make-shift splint, for his leg. It was evidence that she was becoming a full fledged healer in her studies.

"I'm assuming that staff is not for healing," Marth said with a bit a confusion.

"No it's not," Elice said gently while tightening the linens around his leg.

"My lord," Marth turned to see the concerned knight addressing him.

"Yes? Who are you?" Marth replied.

"My name is Frey," the man responded. "It may be hard for you but we need to get out of the castle immediately."

"Go?" Marth's eyes widened. "Where?"

Elice stood up and offered her hand to Marth. Her expression was unreadable. "Come on."

"Elice what is going on?" Marth asked, his voice even louder as he took her sisters hand and pulled himself up.

"The castle is under attack," the knight said, answering the question for Elice. Marth just stared at the man in disbelief as Elice supported his weight with her shoulders.

"An attack?" Marth called out slowly as they started to move out of his room and into the halls.

"We don't know much," the knight responded. "The entire garrison was caught off guard."

"How could this happen?" Elice said. "Father's army should had prevented this."

"We had no contact with King Cornelius for quite awhile," the knight replied. "But I'm sure that everything is fine."

Marth nodded in agreement. He did not want to believe that anything had happened to his father and his army. If they were gone it would mean that Altea has lost the war. Marth shook his head trying to get rid of the terrible thought.

They kept running for awhile, a couple of minutes maybe? He suddenly was pulled back by his sister and was forced to stop limping. "What the... Elice, what's wrong?" He looked up and also noticed that Frey halted in his tracks. A distinct sound of whistling in the distance.

"Get down!" The knight yelled.

Although Marth hesitated, Elice obeyed and threw herself to the floor pulling the injured boy with her. Suddenly the torch lights went out and the sound of a huge explosion screamed in Marth's ears. He could feel the floor shake as stone debris from the wall flew over him with smaller pieces of stone pelting his back and in an instant, the event was over.

The boys ears were ringing. He felt disoriented as he looked at his sister.

"Mar... th?" Elice whispered something. "A... r... u okay?"

The boy stood up using the wall to support him but did not respond. Instead he slowly limped over to the new hole in the wall, similar to the one in his room and looked out. He could see the city surrounding the castle burning under an inferno and even though there was a torrential downpour of rain outside, the flames kept burning. As his ears regained its hearing, he started to hear the screams of people in the distance. He could feel the castle shake as other bolts launched by strange giant crossbows blasted holes in the walls.

His home was being destroyed, his friends were out there...

"Why?" The boy muttered out. Why is this happening?

"I do not know," Marth slowly turned to see a battered Frey beside him. The man looked around and sighed. "All of the castle gates have been taken, there is no escape. We don't even have the resources to hold out in a siege now."

"What?" Marth replied, fear gripping his chest. "What about the secret escape passage?"

"We checked that first," Frey replied. "The tunnel collapsed."

"So what do we do now?" Elice asked as she walked beside Marth.

"The safest place would be the inner part of the castle," Frey replied.

"The throne room," Marth added. He knew though that meant staying there for a long time, there was no escape once you trapped yourself in. There was only hope if rescue came from the outside, if his fathers army came back.

"Yes," the knight nodded. "Let's go."

The three went down the hallway. There were people running around in every direction seeking safety; maids, scholars, it was chaos. Marth noticed more holes in some walls and even bodies of some guards. It was like a bad nightmare, one which he wanted to wake up from. After much walking the three finally got to the main hall and in the distance there were the giant reinforced doors that sealed the throne room.

"Come on. Just a few more steps!" Elice said.

"Well, well. What do we have here?" It was a gruff voice of a man. Lightning struck outside briefly illuminating the hall and a new threat a distance away.

The three turned to see a person with a grey beard in armour with a regal cape draping his shoulders. He was accompanied by a legion of soldiers who were lightly plated with the insignia of Gra on their uniforms! Marth stiffened, that couldn't be right! Gra was their closest allies, their neighbours, there was no way that they would be doing this to them.

"King Jiol?" Elice said in surprise. "You did this? You betrayed us?"

"My dear girl, I do not know what you are talking about," the man said sarcastically as his soldiers of marched in to surround them.

"To think the enemy has already broke in this far," Frey said while unsheathing a sword. "But I would never think that Gra would be behind this attack."

"Yes my army is impressive," Kin Jiol replied mockingly. "Although I had a little help from this man and his knights. It was his idea to block off your pathetic escape tunnels and he is actually a scary, vicious killer."

Marth turned to see a tall knight in black plated armour, there was so many layers of heavy metal that any attack seemed useless. He was definitely different than the rest and just stood there like a statue despite king Jiol's comments. He carried a huge lance, the largest Marth had ever seen.

"Although," king Jiol scoffed. "It was my idea to strike Cornelius's army from behind."

Marth froze. No way, that was a lie. His words were surely a lie.

"You lie!" The boy screamed out.

"Heh, believe what you want to believe," king Jiol replied. "But I watched as he died. There will definitely be no one to save you."

"But why?" Elice asked. Her eyes almost watering in tears.

"You don't have to know that. One thing that you should know is that you will all die here."

The soldiers of Gra in response to their kings words pointed their spears towards the three.

"Goodbye, children of Cornelius," king Jiol said in amusement, then added. "And an unnamed knight."

Suddenly a few of the Gra soldiers between Marth and the throne room fell, arrows lodged in their backs.

"What?" King Jiol said in surprise.

Marth turned to see a handful of Altean knights running from the throne room ready to meet the invaders.

"Come Marth and Elice!" A voice yelled from the huge doors.

"Jagen!" Marth replied in relief as he recognized who it was. He then turned to Frey, "Come on, let's go!"

But the knight shook his head. "Go sire, like these brave men here I will buy you some time."

"What? No!" Marth shook his head, realizing that they were just making themselves sacrifices. "There is no way I will accept that. That is just..."

"Count this knight honoured to die in the service of his prince," Frey said while smiling. "Live, sire, and grow strong.…"

"Come on!" Elice yelled. While pulling Marth away. The boy desperately turned to see the Altean knights with their weapons drawn hopelessly outnumbered. He regretted not being able to say or do anything more. Slowly he turned his head back to the direction of the throne room as the clashing of steel was heard behind them.

They were almost there. Just a few more steps to safety.

"Stop them!" King Jiol yelled in anger.

Marth turned once more to see the black knight pull his lance out of the ground as lightning briefly illuminated the room again. Then in one swift movement he just disappeared from view. In less than a second a few cries were heard as a large number of Altean knights were hit by something. The boys eyes widened, he couldn't follow what just happened. Afterwards, thunder roared as some bodies hit the ground and the black knight emerged from the shadows a close and dangerous distance away. He then raised his lance to throw it.

"Marth!" Elice yelled.

The boy using all his strength and ignoring the pain in his legs jumped back, the lance that was thrown, flew just a few inches over his head. Marth safely landed in the throne room and watched as the giant doors in front of him were sealed. He was breathing hard, in an effort to catch his breath, safe for now. But the men on the other side had no hope left. He could only just stare at the giant lance lying on the floor that could had easily taken his life just a moment ago.

But with that strange knights skill... and at that distance... Did he miss on purpose?

Marth could hear the murmurs of other people in the throne hall. Some were nobles, but there were mostly knights among them. To the side he could see Elice talking to Jagen, one of his fathers most trusted paladins. After awhile, Elice turned and looked at him and gave a light smile despite the situation before walking towards him.

"Marth," she paused as if trying to find the right words. Her voice quivering as she spoke. "I couldn't find... mom is not here."

The boy just stared back at a loss for words before Elice reached forward and hugged him. He sighed, what could he possibly do? "Don't worry Elice, I'm sure she is okay. Besides, I'm here for you. That will not change."

Elice seemed to force a smile and took a step back. She then removed an object on her head and placed it on Marths'.

"A tiara?" Marth said skeptically.

"No silly, it's a circlet," Elice replied softly trying to sound calm. "Please wear it always and remember me." Elice replied while tears slowly fell down her cheeks once more.

"Wait, what?" The boy asked confused. What did she mean?

"Farewell Marth," Elice said before pushing him gently into a group of knights who took formation behind him while he was not looking. She then took out her staff.

It was the staff from earlier. Suddenly Marth realized why she was carrying it around despite it not being used for healing. It was a warp staff, capable of teleporting people a decent distance away, the problem was the wielder couldn't use it on herself. The boy suddenly tensed up as he knew what his sister was planning.

"Elice, no. Stop this." The boy struggled to move back to Elice, but his broken leg finally gave out and he stumbled. A knight in the group caught him in the fall and restrained him.

"Sorry, sire," Jagen said. "But we must protect you. You are a prince first, this is your path now, the only way."

Marth turned back to see Elice, holding the warp staff close to her chest as if she was praying. Her eyes closed and her face showed a solemn peaceful expression. "Don't worry Marth. You will be sent to a safe place."

"No!" Marth yelled. "There must be another way."

He could see the giant doors starting to buckle from a force from the outside and a few people who have chosen to stay brace themselves against it, trying to keep it shut a little longer. His parents wouldn't allow this. He shouldn't have to leave everybody behind. He should save them all. Suddenly a gentle circle of light began to form around Marth and the group of knights.

"Elice," Marth closed his eyes and opened them again, a new resolve written over his face. "Stay alive Elice, I will be back for you. I promise, so stay alive!"

The girl opened her eyes in shock at her brothers words, before nodding gently. "Thank you Marth."

Suddenly the circle of light was very strong. Despite how intense it was, the boy decided he wouldn't shut his eyes. His sisters face was fading from his vision, into the blinding light. Despite his promise, every part of his being screamed to stop the spell and protect her now, but it was too late. He could only call out.

"Elice. Elice! ELICCCCCCEEEEE!"

Then there was nothing but silence as everything faded in a blinding light.

* * *

**Authors Notes:** Oh my! The black knight is in this story from PoR and RD? Well actually no, he isn't, this person is someone completely different and I will leave it at that. Even though you may not know Marth's story, here is a perfect chance to find out.

Now I will follow the storyline, but I want the people who played these games to completely forget canon. Seriously anything can happen, anybody can die and pairings can develop in any way. We aren't limited to seeing things from Marth's perspective either.

Anyways, sorry about my other story just ending. I had my first year of university and suddenly got caught in a whirlwind of stuff, hopefully my life is balanced enough to have a weekly updated series. I hope you enjoy reading this story as much as I will writing it and not nitpick at my spelling and grammar. Seriously I think my old beta-readers are annoyed at me for my inconsistency and I know that sometimes I struggle with tenses and some punctuation. Heck I still do.

Nevertheless criticism and review is always welcome.


	2. Prologue II

The second update of Let Hope Light Your Way (or LHLYW for short). One day, it is my hope to get ten reviews a chapter. That would be nice, then I could know what everybody thinks and improve my writing style and story content. Well I can only hope can I?

Special thanks to Gunlord500 for his first review (but since I resubmitted this story, I guess it won't show).

Here we go again.

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**Prologue – Prince of Exile**

Marth just stood there, his blue eyes wide open in shock as the radiant, white light that once wrapped around him slowly faded away. His throat was dry, where his screams had died out awhile ago. His arm was stretched out, he was reaching ahead, but now there was nothing there. It was done, his sister was gone and he was warped into the middle of nowhere, unable to do a single thing. He felt entirely helpless and empty, everything that he cared about was gone.

"Tsk..." Marth gritted his teeth as he clutched his chest. He no longer felt the resolve and strength he once had back at the castle. He promised that he would be back to save his sister, to save everybody. But how? It now felt like empty words. If he did come back another day, what would be the chances that everybody was alive?

He could see black smoke in the sky, evidence that the burning city and castle was quite far off. It was absolute chaos, the capital city taken by surprise in a single night. No doubt that the rest would follow now that there was no order or army. Marth couldn't see the rest of the city, his view of the horizon was blocked however by tall, leafy, green trees. Raindrops gently doused the forest which gave some protection from the harsh storm winds. He slightly recognized this place, it was the area where he and Elice used to play when they were kids. Maybe she thought of this place and sent everybody here...

The boy shook his head trying to forget a memory that would bring him pain and took a step forward when suddenly, a sharp pain pierced his leg. He would had tripped and hit something head first, but at the last moment he caught the trunk of a tree with both arms.

"I forgot, I had a broken leg," he muttered to himself as he let go of the stump and sat on a conveniently placed rock.

Marth watched as other beams of light sent down new knights. Apparently Elice's warp staff could only teleport people one at a time. What a stupid flaw, being able to save everybody but yourself. It was a noble sacrifice for the user, but if he ever met the creator of the staff he would certainly- Suddenly his vision spun, he only realized it just now. Was it the after-effects of being warped? It was understandable, since it was his first time being disassembled by magic and rebuilt somewhere else. But with the state he was in now, was it even possible for him to travel?

"We have to go back!" It was the voice of one of the knights. Marth looked up to see the a man in armour, bearing the symbol of Altea. His face bore a worried expression, almost desperate as he paced around.

"Yes," another knight yelled. "I left my wife and daughter back at the city!"

"No," it was the stern voice of someone more recognizable this time, Jagen. "Please reconsider, if you go back now, the enemy will find you. There is a high chance you will be killed."

"Then what do you suggest?" The first knight replied with a hint of anger in his voice. "Do we just leave our love ones behind?"

"I... no not I, but your princess Elice suggested you fight another day," Jagen replied while he walked towards Marth checking to see if he was okay. Some knights nodded and murmured among themselves, there were even some civilians. One was an old man, Marth remembered him being one of his fathers trusted tacticians. The rain doused them all, making a mist-like outline around everyones body as if to reflect the grim feelings among them.

"So what is the plan?" Marth watched another knight ask, as Jagen adjusted the splint on his leg.

"We head to the docks, which should still be in our territory, safe from the enemy for now," Jagen replied, his expression unreadable. "Then we would use a ship to travel and take refuge at the island of Talys."

Marth nodded. So thats what Jagen and Elice were talking about earlier. Suddenly the murmurs raised to shouts.

"What! Go to that small island?"

"We will not be able to do anything there."

"Nobody will be saved if we hide," said another knight. Marth clenched his fists in frustration, he could understand them all, he knew what they were feeling. And yet-

"Enough!" Marth yelled over the shouting and everybody turned to look at him. Even the boy was surprised that he suddenly spoke out. Rain dripped over his hair and drenched his face. If he was crying, nobody would had been able to tell. "Knights of Altea, I agree that it would be best to fight another day."

"Were you not the one screaming earlier at your sister to stop using her warp spell and stay in the castle?" One of the nobles replied.

"How dare you speak to the prince like that," said a knight in green armour.

"It's okay," Marth replied while raising his hand. "It may be true that I didn't want to go, but I made a promise. That I would become stronger and be back to save everybody. Knights of Altea, I ask you today, please make the same promise as I did."

Some knights smiled, while others just nodded. The knight in green armour even gave a thumbs up.

"Are you with me?" Marth asked. A brief silence followed his words.

"I am," the green knight said.

"As am I," Jagen added.

"I am in," a few more knights added. They all then looked at the first knight who seemed to have the most doubts in leaving.

The man stared back, looked down and sighed. "I am in as well." Which prompted a quiet cheer among the group.

"Then it is settled then," said Jagen. "We will head to the docks, and notify the villages of the incoming danger that approaches. Once we reach Talys, we will set up a refugee camp and-"

Suddenly he was interrupted by the galloping of a horse. In an instant every knight drew their weapons. Marth tensed, "Has the enemy found us already?"

The sound of hooves got louder and louder and Jagen who seemed to be closest to the origin of the sound readied a javelin in his hand. Suddenly a glint of red armour was in the distance and he brought his hand back ready to throw, "I got you now."

"Wait!" The green knight yelled. "Don't throw it."

Jagen relaxed his hand, but still kept his javelin ready. "What is it Abel?"

"That... that knight in red is... Cain!" Abel exclaimed.

Surely enough, the cavalier came in close, wearing the red armour of Gra but held a white flag with the blue Altean symbol on it. Marth was surprised at his appearance, the man was almost half dead! Blood was running off his plating, his weapon was broken and his arm even had an arrow in it.

"Cain! Why the heck are you wearing red armour!" Abel said, furious. "We almost mistaken you for an enemy."

"Heh..." Cain muttered. "Good to see you too, Abel."

"Explain yourself," Jagen said while motioning for one of the knights to treat his wounds.

"The red armour?" Cain asked, "Gra attacked our army from behind while we were facing the Dolhr-Grust alliance. I was made a messenger to report back, but we were surrounded. Taking the enemies armour and trying to sneak through sounded good at the time- Ow!"

"Sorry," replied the knight who was trying to apply a vulnerary to a wound.

Jagen put a hand to his face. "We know about the betrayal, but were there any survivors?"

Cain looked down a grim expression on his face, "I don't know..."

"It's alright," Jagen replied. "You did a great job getting out there in one piece."

"Yeah," Abel jumped in. "You did good charging out of there, red bull."

"Heh, you don't need to tell me that." Cain replied. "Marth, I have a message from your father."

"Yes?" Marth asked in anticipation.

"The fate of the world now rests in your hands," Cain replied in one tone. "Thats all he said."

"What?" Marth blinked in surprise. Surely he had a responsibility of saving Altea, but the world? Why would his father say such a thing?

"Marth." said Jagen.

"Yes?" The boy replied, still thinking over his fathers words.

"Can you walk?"

Marth tested his leg by inching it forward, only to have it respond with a sharp pain. "I don't think so."

"Alright," Jagen motioned to Abel. "Help Marth get on Cain's horse, this will make travel easier."

"Yes sir," Abel replied.

"Oh and Marth?" Jagen said while walking to him.

"Yes?" The boy replied as Abel helped lift him up.

The old paladin took out a iron sword and offered it to Marth. "The path ahead of you is going to be a long and difficult one, but even so we will do everything to help you."

Marth looked back, nodded and grabbed the sword. "Okay. Lets go!"

* * *

The boy opened his eyes and stretched out his arms, satisfied with his long nap. He lay down on a lush green, grassy hill with a single tree to provide shade. It was mid-day with beautiful, warm weather and a bright sun. The dreadful, rainy day from before... Was he dreaming, no that was a memory. He reached up to scratch his head, until it hit a familiar object. It was Elice's circlet. How many years has it been now? Almost two years?

The boy slowly stood up. So many things have happened in the past few months. When they first arrived on Talys, the king welcomed them with open arms and giving them use of the Eastern area of the island. At first the inhabitants were a little wary of letting strangers onto their land. Especially since they taken a neutral stance in the war. But in time, they opened up and accepted them like their own.

Marth walked to the large oak tree. At the base there was a mark carved in the wood, one for every day he stayed on this island. There were hundreds of marks, so many that it went around the thick tree over and over. He couldn't forget his old home, his old friends, his family. He wished this war never existed, that life was normal again. There was not a day that passed where he wanted to go back.

He reached for an overhead branch and pulled himself in an effort to climb the tree. Still living in a foreign land was interesting; a different culture, clothing, foods, weather and new places to see. The boy frowned, even away from home he was forced to study at the local institutions and library, still he had to admit he got to meet new friends. The knights when they had the time trained him and when he was alone he would push himself to the limit, even late in the night. It was hard at first, but he did make his first step forward.

Finally, the boy reached the top of the tree and stood on the most sturdiest branch. A gentle gust of wind blew through his hair as his head went over the leaves. He could see a lot from up here, the new town that had taken thousands of refugees, some who were not even Altean. He could see the large eastern fortress that housed the knights. There were even farmlands on this once barren field. They were safe for now, undiscovered by Gra, Doluna, Grust. Everybody has grown in this somewhat peaceful time.

Suddenly he saw a strange figure from the corner of his eyes. He turned and slightly shielded his sight with his hand because the sun was directly behind it. It was a flying white horse, but there was also someone on it. It was a girl, with long blue hair that waved in the wind. He never seen something like this before, it was strange, interesting, maybe even beautiful. He watched as they flew away in the distance.

Too bad, he was not even able to see her face. Still, what he saw wasn't important. He might even forget what he saw the next day if things got busy. It wasn't like he was going to see her again...

* * *

**Authors Notes:** What? how can Marth not know who the girl is? He knew her in the storyline, especially after two years! That is true. However, for the purpose of the plot, I wanted to include the 'first meeting' if you know what I mean.

Aw man... This chapter felt short again. Maybe littered with mistakes since I only proofread it. Maybe theres not enough content, or I'm not capturing enough in a scene, like facial expressions or what a person is feeling. Maybe it will come more naturally as I write more. Maybe next week I'll force a longer chapter next week and ask what you guys think.

Frequent update is something I'm forcing myself to do. But look at me, already the second week and I missed the deadline by a day. Ooops... speaking of deadlines, I wonder if Monday is really the best time to release a chapter, does anybody even read on a weekday when they are busy with other stuff? Well maybe, but still...

Anyways, as for the ending, I love putting that little piece of irony there. If you get what I mean? People who played the game will certainly know what I'm talking about. Honestly if you haven't played Fire Emblem DS, there are so many ways to do it. Well some methods are illegal, which involve the use of a downloadable emu- *cough* -lator and R- *cough* -OM. Seriously, a search engine is your friend.

Anyways, thats it. If you liked this story add it to your alerts and review.


	3. Where Stories Begin

Wow, the long awaited chapter. I was supposed to write this over the summer, but then I went on a vacation with my friends and did not have the time or internet access to write a story. I came back late August, only to have a wisdom teeth extraction and be in pain for the rest of the summer.

Now its frosh week and well... No time again. Been so busy moving into residence, so I ended up recycling one of my one-shots to make this chapter. Some of you may recognize this piece from a few months before. ARGH! I hate my laziness, I already have a storyboard drawn out for the next five chapters, I just need to work on my time management so I can dish them out.

Wish me luck!

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**Chapter 1 – Where Stories Begin**

_Long ago, humans lived on a large continent named Archaneia. It was a beloved time of peace and prosperity, forged by wisdom and understanding. But everything changed when dragons appeared and attacked. _

_Dragons are mystical, intelligent creatures that come in many forms. Some were white and spanned great feathery wings, while others possessed red scales and took serpentine appearances. The great armies of men were no match for their powerful dragon flame and city after city fell to their might. A long, dark age began full of oppression and evil. For some people, it would have been better if they were never born._

_But one day, a new hope appeared. It was a boy who wielded a blade of light, said to be blessed by the heavens with the divine power to easily slay dragons. The hero took a stand against the Medeus, leader of the dragons and after a long battle, the lad was victorious. His actions brought hope to the remaining people who were able to take a stand again and win the war._

_Time passed, kingdoms were rebuilt and people forgot the past. Currently, the known nations of the world are:_

_The Holy Kingdom of Akaneia, also know as the first. This empire is known to have the largest borders on the crescent shaped continent and have the most cities made wealthy by trade._

_The nation of Aurelis, neighbours and friends of Akaneia. The lowland is full of grassy plains as far as the eye could see._

_Doluna, founded by dragons and the place where they appeared. Little is known about this expanse and few have dared to venture in._

_The Kingdom of Medon. This land is filled with countless cold mountains and is home to the strange winged horses, the Pegasus._

_The legendary city of Khadein, founded by a great sage, famous in the war. This city is known for magic and its archives of knowledge._

_The Empire of Grust, a country known for its pride in its military might and traditions._

_The Kingdom of Altea, found in the centre of the continent. It is the birthplace of the legendary hero who wielded the blade of light._

_The Kingdom of Gra, which neighbours Altea. The land was actually once part of Altea, now the people of both nations hold close ties. _

_The Kingdom of Talys, which was recently created. It is found on a remote, yet considerably large island to the east and-_

* * *

A girl sighed as she closed the book shut.

It was interesting reading at first, but as soon as it got into the detailed, history parts, it suddenly became boring. "Besides it was now time," the girl thought to herself as she blew out a small candle, her only source of light for reading.

The girl walked outside to the balcony of the room. Everything seemed empty in the stillness of the night. The only thing that broke the unsettling silence was the occasional sound of an animal or insect. A light breeze passed every so often and gently swept every green plant. Milky clouds glided in the sky above and shrouded the luminescent full moon. It was a perfect time to do anything you wanted in the cloak of darkness. The girl then smiled mischievously, it was a perfect time to escape.

Her crystal blue eyes adjusted to the darkness, the balcony was three stories up and she had quite a view. There was an area below, commonly referred to as 'the backyard' by the castle servants. Servants who wouldn't be out at this hour. A stone pathway stretched out some distance from 'the backyard', to the expansive castle courtyard. And further in the distance beyond was the castle gates.

Any sane person wouldn't go this far. Most sixteen year old girls would be at home sleeping. But here she was, many feet up above the ground trying to pull off yet another daring escape. She stayed up almost two days straight; being observant, studying the guards patrolling patterns, habits, listening to gossip and other similar details. In fact, there was one particular guard circling around this building and passing the area directly below roughly every ten minutes.

The plan was simple, get down from the balcony. Use the cover of the shrubs in the castle courtyard to evade more guards and then use the hidden exit in the castle barracks to escape into the fields. The last part was a bit unorthodox. One would normally think that many soldiers would actually be in the barracks. But she studied these people long enough to know otherwise. The barracks was by far the better choice then taking the more heavily guarded main gate directly.

The girl snapped out of her thoughts as her ears picked up a faint sound. Right on cue, a guard turned the corner. He wore some armour made out of leather and carried a vicious-looking spear. The girl shivered at the idea of being caught by him. He then slowly walked around the area below in an distinct pattern, a typical scanning pattern as expected. Though if she didn't know any better, he looked as if he was sleepwalking, more like a walking zombie just trying to do his job. Maybe this escape would be easy after all.

After a few minutes, the guard turned another corner and disappeared from view. The girl wasted no time and quickly pulled at a long bed sheet that she previously tied to the balcony railing ahead of time to make sure it was secure. It was like a safety rope, one which she wouldn't want coming loose. That would be very bad...**.**

She jumped; there was no time for sliding down. The feat was nothing new to her at all. The girl felt the wind on her face and her stomach slightly tightened. Just as the ground dangerously approached, the girl tightened her grip on the rope and swung her legs. A perfect flip later and she safely landed on the grass. She sighed a breath of relief wishing she had the time to admire her acrobatics, but she shook her head and sprinted down the stone path to the courtyard.

The courtyard was basically a large garden surrounded by its own set of stone walls. A beauty for most visitors in the castle to admire. However this also meant that more guards would be out here since it was close to the castle gates. She wasn't worried though. Based on her earlier research, today was the day where most of the guards would be in other districts of the land in other garrisons or missions. Thus the patrol should be pretty thin.

The girl jumped into the cover of the nearest bush and couldn't help but sigh, thanking God that these bushes didn't have thorns. It would had been easier to continue taking the stone path. But then for sure she would have been spotted. There were two guards walking around the courtyard and on the stone walls above, there were another four guards all evenly spaced out from each other.

If she didn't know better, this situation would become a twisted game of hide and seek. If the guards on the walls weren't there, then it would had been easy to just run across the roofs of the buildings and the walls. That would be the fastest and most convenient way to escape. But that would be too easy, wouldn't it?

So instead she looked around for objects that would block the guards line of sight, objects she could hide behind. There were a bunch of evenly spaced bushes in a linear arrangement just a few feet away and a well-placed fountain afterwards. At very end of the courtyard was a tree. Those would have to do for now. If she hugged the edges of the wall while using these objects for cover, then she wouldn't be detected by the guards on the walls.

However that left the guards in the courtyard. They happened to move around, making things a bit more complicated. Once again she was going to have to rely on timing to evade their line of sight and get out of this mess. She watched carefully as the closest guard walked away.

Now! The girl dashed into the nearest bush, hoping to make as little sound as possible. Almost instantly the guard turned around and looked at her general direction. The girl looked right back at him, frozen and hoping that he didn't see her through all these leaves. After a brief terrifying moment, the guard inched a bit closer.

"Whats the matter?" His companion asked from far off.

"I thought I heard a sound!" He replied. The girl felt the butterflies in her stomach from the increasing anxiety. She was only one step from being caught!

"Must be some animal." The guard replied.

A few seconds passed as the guard looked at her direction in hesitation and then back to his companion. "Yeah... You must be right," he then started to walk away.

The girl wasn't sure whether to be relieved or insulted due to being called an animal. But now with both guards at the farthest end of the walls away, she easily took the time to skip a few bushes and make it to the stone edge of the giant fountain. She looked up, only to notice the guards on the wall started to move... They were not supposed to move at all! The guard on the wall closest to her would be able to spot her in a few seconds if he continued walking.

"What! Why now? Why couldn't he just stand there?" The girl thought to herself as she frantically looked around and noticed that she could not see below the surface of the water in the fountain due to the lack of light. She winced at her idea and immediately tried to think of an alternative, but none came to mind. She really just wanted to hide on the edge of the fountain, but now she did not have a choice.

Knowing that she would regret it later. The girl gently stepped into the water and submerged herself, realizing that she had no footing and that the fountain was ridiculously deep... and cold. She looked up and noticed that it was actually easy to see up into the open sky, despite it being impossible to see into the water. The girl watched as the guard on the walls stopped. Maybe he heard the surprised loud gasp for air she made before sinking.

1...

2...

3... She suddenly became aware that she was mentally counting to herself.

6...

Seven seconds passed. Who knew that one could be so conscious of the time when they are underwater? How long could an average person hold their breath? She recalled one of her old teachers saying one minute. But now she wasn't so sure...

13...

14..

Fifteen seconds passed and her lungs were already screaming at her. The guard on the wall finally started to walk away. All she needed to do now was surface and... her thoughts were cut off short as the two courtyard guards from earlier moved to the edge of the fountain! At first she thought she was seen but then she realized that they too could not have seen under the surface of the dark, cold water. It appeared that now they were just standing there having a conversation. Oh no... this was really bad.

34...

More than thirty-five seconds had passed and they were still talking! The girl suddenly remembered that people who held their breaths for more than a minute were more relaxed and didn't have their heart beating as fast as hers right now. They could also exhale to slightly relieve their lungs. But if she did that, the air bubbles released at the surface would alert the guards! She had to hold it in and wait just a little longer.

...

...

The girl gave up on counting and she did not even bother to pay attention to the conversing guards above and instead stared at the fountain wall in front of her. Her vision was slightly getting a bit blurry and her lungs felt as stiff as stone. Time now felt so much slower, what was seconds felt like agonizing minutes. Maybe she should just surface now, and be punished for trying to escape. Maybe that was better than dying at the bottom of a fountain. She relaxed and began to float to the surface.

"No! This wasn't right! I should never give up," the girl thoughts screamed at her. She suddenly stiffened up and tried to sink again, but her aching muscles wouldn't respond in time. She surfaced. Oh no, this was it...

But there were no harsh calls, or anybody attacking. The girl weakly turned to see the conversing guards once again walking away to the opposite end of the courtyard. The girl gasped as quietly as she could while inhaling the sweet beautiful air. Then wasting no time, she crawled to edge of the tree that she made a mental note of earlier. The girl was now hidden from the courtyard guards and the wall guards once again.

She sat there, feeling very disoriented as her vision slowly returned. Despite being in a soaking wet summer dress, the warm summer air was a welcome comfort to the cold, dark fountain waters. Maybe if she was lucky she would have a few minutes to catch a breather.

"Hey!" A rough voice yelled in the distance. Maybe not...

"Ah," the girl gasped in surprise, the first sound that she actually made tonight. Did he see her?

"The princess escaped!" The voice yelled. Judging by his volume, he was pretty far back. Maybe he discovered the rope tied up to the balcony.

"Oi! I remember a sound from the bushes a few minutes earlier!" One of the courtyard guards said with a distinguishable accent. The two guards then walked to one of the bushes that she was previously in.

There was no use remaining concealed now, an adequate search would reveal her location anyways. She felt a bit of pain inside knowing the fact that all her efforts to remain concealed would somewhat be wasted, but at least she had a head start now. The girl sprinted, out the cover of the tree, surprising the guards on the wall. She herself, was surprised that her strength was back so fast.

"Ha… halt!" One guard stammered out in surprise. But it was too late, she already put a fair distance between them.

"Guard the gate!" Another guard yelled.

She could see the iron gate ahead which was already closed and a few guards standing ready. Too bad she wasn't taking the gate. Exiting the courtyard she suddenly made a sharp right turn.

"What?" She heard another guard exclaim in surprise.

A smaller wooden door on the castle walls now lay up ahead. It was a fair distance away, but there were no guards in the way this time. She kicked open the door and just as expected… there were more guards?

"No way," she breathed hard, tired from a very long sprint. In fact there were a lot of guards when she expected maybe one or two.

"Happy birthday sergeant!" The whole room cheered. The girl just stood there dumbfounded. There was food, drinks and everything. Of course! There just had to be a party today. You would think the soldiers would rather celebrate at the local tavern than in this old hole in the castle walls. She might as well have the worst luck possible tonight. But it seemed that due to the loud celebration they haven't yet noticed her presence. Just take a step back and…**.**

"Halt!" A chasing guard yelled from behind. The girl winced as the whole room turned their attention to her and suddenly everyone fell silent. The party didn't stop when she kicked a door open, but it stopped when a guard from behind yells. She really did have the worst luck after-all...

"Errr, hi there!" She said. It was indeed awkward if you consider the circumstances.

"Hello," the nearest guard said to her. "Trying to escape again?" She was female and was trying to use a sweet tone of voice. It wasn't working.

"Well you know," the girl responded trying to sound casual. "I just want some free time and all." What else can she say? That was the truth after all.

"You could always just ask, Princess Sheeda" another guard said. His slumped, relaxed position suddenly changed to a more respectable stiff posture. The other guards did the same too.

"And I already know the answer," Sheeda replied.

"Your father entrusted your safety to us. Why leave the castle when you can stay here and do whatever you want?" he asked.

All I could manage was a brief sigh. They didn't know anything; she was always busy doing something. From studies to etiquette to sleep, there was nothing new. She just wanted a break. What was wrong with that?

"Don't bother, we had this conversation so many times," the female guard said. "You know, it looks like we are restraining you against your own will in your own home. But you want to go out in the middle of the night! For your own sake and your safety we cannot possibly allow that!"

"There is nothing to be afraid of," Sheeda said. The same lecture again...

"My princess, may I respectfully ask for you return to your room?"

"No," Sheeda coldly replied.

An awkward silence passed, then the girl made a dash. The exit was on the other end of the room with fifteen guards in the way. But it didn't matter, she had to make her escape. One guard attempted to hold her with his arms but Sheeda pivoted on her right foot and simply twirled around him. They were playing rough, but she couldn't blame them. It was their job.

The female guard tried to grab the girls scarf and she would have been successful if the girl hadn't ducked. The loose piece of clothing harmlessly flew out of the guards reach. Two guards behind, thirteen more in the front to go! She didn't have the time for this, nor did she probably have the ability to evade them all. So instead she jumped and ran on the nearest table, one that extended from one end to the room the other.

The girl avoided the guards diving on the table as well as all the food. It would be a shame if the party was ruined. Now there was only one guard left at the head of the table; the party host. He attempted to grab the girl with one sweeping movement, but she jumped and flipped over him. The girl had a few seconds to look into his surprised upside-down face.

"Happy birthday to you." Sheeda said and finished her graceful landing. She then opened the hidden door and ran outside the castle.

* * *

**Authors Notes: **For some of you this chapter may be new, but for others not so much. Sorry, I am really sorry! As I mentioned before, this chapter was a one-shot, written when I was experimenting with first person perspectives and present tense writing. Now I tried to convert this to third person, past tense writing and I'm not sure if I really was successful. I hope you guys are not ticked off by the bad spelling or grammar, I'm trying my best to improve my proof reading skills, if I have any.

If you haven't already figured it out. I written this from Sheeda's perspective! It started dark and tense at first, but I had the urge to make the story more lighthearted as it progressed, as most of the prologue was grim to begin with. Sheeda is a clever and childish character and I was looking for many ways to express that. So I hope this one was effective.

Anyways, I will try to make another chapter next week. But many of you probably given up on me saying that. XD

Until then. Read, review and subscribe to your alerts!


	4. Looming Danger

What a surprise, another chapter late by a few days :)

Anyways this is another chapter to the Talys arc. Actually this is version 2, since the one I uploaded yesterday was pretty much bad quality. What do you expect, I only had five minutes of battery life on my laptop and I didn't expect to have time to upload a better copy later. But in the end I did. So once again, here is the second chapter. Have fun reading.

**Chapter 2 – Looming Danger**

She knew she was in a dream. The feeling of being half-aware, moving around even though she had no control over her body. Sheeda just floated there in empty space, how she got there in the first place was beyond her. It just happened.

Suddenly another girl stood in front of her. This girl was small, maybe 5 or 6 years of age. She had long blue hair, almost like the rare blue rose found in certain fields of Talys. She wore a plain white dress, although there were some artistic designs stitched on the back of the piece of clothing. The little girl turned around and instantly Sheeda instantly recognized her face. It was a younger version of herself! Both pairs of bright blue eyes staring at each other in curiosity.

In the time Sheeda took to study herself, the world materialized around as if being created by an unknown architect. They were in a room, with stone walls and a window to let plenty of bright sunlight in. There were also many bookshelves and portraits, evidence that the room in fact was a private library. It actually felt pretty cozy. The little girl somehow was now sitting at a table and was being lectured by an older woman pacing around.

"Where were you earlier today?" The woman asked, her face showing a perplexed expression. Sheeda noted that based on her style of clothing, she looked like a scholar.

"I was out," the little girl said innocently, while looking down at her open book.

"Out where?" the woman asked. Her brow raising in interest, although it seemed by the tone of her voice that she already knew the answer.

"I was in town, exploring!" The little girl replied, her eyes full of wonder.

Sheeda who was just floating there couldn't help but laugh out loud at herself. She knew the two in front of her couldn't hear her. She was like a ghost and this event already happened in the past. She couldn't remember how many times she received a lecture like this one. But why was she dreaming this?

The woman stopped moving and gave a sigh. She then took a seat in front of the girl. "Sheeda, look at me."

The girl obediently looked up.

"You done this many times already," the woman said.

"I know," the girl replied.

"But you are missing your studies and wasting your time," the woman continued.

"But you are missing your studies and wasting your time," the little girl said at the same time, even imitating her elders tone of voice and the woman moved her hands.

The woman blinked in surprise. "If you know that, then how come-"

"Because its boring," the little girl huffed and rested her head on her arm.

The woman sighed again, "Sheeda..."

"Yes?" The little girl shifted her head to look back at her teacher, who was now wearing a gentle expression.

"Your father, your mother, the people that you may rule in the future. If you want them to be truly happy, you have to be obedient and do everything you're told."

Sheeda felt something grip at her heart as she heard those words, especially at the mention of her mother. Suddenly the world around started to break apart and dissolve into nothingness. The pieces of the floor, the books from the shelves, everything just simply disappeared. What was left was white empty space, the nothingness that was originally there.

Both the teacher and the little girl also started to fade away. Sheeda felt her heart beating fast, as if something outside from the real world was tugging her back. But before they finally disappeared she thought she heard her younger self whisper something in a faint voice.

"But what about my happiness?"

* * *

Sheeda's eyes shot wide open. Something was wrong, out of place, as if she remained resting on the ground any longer, that she would put herself in danger. She listened, wondering if it was safe to get up, yet for a brief moment all she could hear was her rapidly beating heart. She was vaguely aware of her dress still damp from hiding in a cold fountain earlier and a discomforting pain at the back of her throat.

The girls heart missed a beat as a cracking sound broke the silence, the same sound that forced her out of her sleep. It was the sound of twigs being broken under foot, somebody was out here with her yet based from the volume of the sound, it was still some distance away.

Not wasting a moment, Sheeda silently stood up and looked around to get a bearing of her surroundings. She was in a forrest with some trees around, just enough to let the moonlight gently peak in. The girl then slipped away in the direction opposite to where the sound came from, but as she moved the cracking sound followed her. She was being chased! The girl in response increased her speed. Impossible... whatever it was, heard her even though she was as silent as possible.

What could be following her? Talys was a relatively small island and no dangerous animals were ever found. The castle guards were usually not strict with her, it was like a game, once she got out of the castle it was considered her victory and they wouldn't go after her. She was breathing hard, her scarf seemed to flow in the air behind her because of how fast she was running. But the cracking, or footsteps kept up, in fact whatever was chasing her was closing in.

Thinking fast, the girl ran to the nearest tree and using her momentum she jumped, grabbing a high branch. Tightening her grip, she then pulled herself up and continued to climb the tree until she was a fair distance up. The sound of footsteps slowed and grew faint, but it didn't matter because it was close, almost directly under the tree. She could hear its strange breathing, it almost was like a snort. There was no escape.

She peered through the leaves, trying to catch a glimpse of what it was. Slowly it came to view, it was a white horse with black eyes and was medium in size compared to other mounts. But it had feathery wings that were so beautiful and majestic. Sheeda sighed with relief and joy realizing who it was.

"Artemis!" She called out, the name of her Pegasus.

The winged horse looked up and neighed in happiness to see its owner. The creature shared the same traits as her, sneaking away when the servants took her out in the open fields. It was obviously very easy since the horse had wings. But Sheeda didn't mind, as Artemis was intelligent and always came back... eventually.

Sheeda slowly climbed down the tree and landed softly on the grass with both feet. "You gave me quite a scare girl."

Artemis nodded and stretched her wings as her owner patted her head. It would be easy for a creature like this to run easily after her and hear quiet sounds.

"Alright, lets go to where I originally wanted to go," Sheeda said, while noting that Artemis still had a saddle on her.

The pegasus nodded again happily as it tucked its wings in so it could slip through the trees once again. The two walked for a few minutes until they reached the edge of the woods and the girl was surprised to find out her destination was not as far as she expected. They emerged onto tall, white cliffs overlooking the ocean.

This was her secret sanctuary, her thinking spot, the place she never showed anyone, except for one person. It was perhaps the highest place on the island, the end of the world. Beyond the horizon there was nothing more than the ocean and the sky. Her mind screamed for sleep, she knew that only a few minutes passed when she closed her eyes and saw a strange dream. But where she was now, she was too excited to even lie down.

That dream bothered her. Based on what she remembered, she was supposed to do what she is told. But, despite her occasional "escapes," she did everything she was told, from classes to etiquette, in fact she did them all very well. So much that she never had time anymore. Sheeda sighed realizing there still had to be more, another meaning that she was missing. But after a moments thought, she could not think of anything else. In frustration she looked down.

Below her was a puddle of crystal clear water, so clear that she saw her reflection. A girl with blue eyes stared back, exactly like the little girl from her dream. Her father once said that her face looked exactly like her mothers, skin with a pale complexion uncommon to the people native to Talys with subtropical weather all year round. Her mother...

Her heart tightened as she realized she couldn't remember anything and at the fact that something was indeed missing. Suddenly Artemis gently nudged Sheeda's arm in concern.

"Oh," the girl looked up in surprise. "Sorry, Artemis. I was lost in thought."

The winged horse whined in response.

"Alright, lets going home," Sheeda said while walking and pulling herself onto the saddle. The horse then extended its wings and took flight towards the castle.

* * *

The castle gate was ahead, but the iron gates were open. The girl blinked in confusion, she recalled it being closed when she tried to escape earlier. It was possible that some soldiers probably went searching for her, yet another topic to be lectured about. But there was still absolutely no reason to the leave the gates open.

Artemis landed and the girl hopped off and looked around, but there were no guards in sight. Suddenly a red flag was tipped and a number of scenarios flooded her head. Maybe her father decided to teach a lesson by hiding everyone, almost like reverse psychology, perhaps? Instead of a loud lecture, you will get an awkward silence.

It was possible, but unlikely. Maybe there was a party underway and guests were being let through? She paused realizing that there should be more guards around if that were the case. There was also no occasion except the birthday she crashed earlier, but of course that guard wouldn't get the castle to himself. The girl looked around and saw the courtyard was not decorated either.

Her heart sunk with worry as she considered the last scenario. "Artemis go to the stables okay?"

The pegasus nodded and trotted away.

The girl ran through the courtyard, past the fountain and trees. She then ran to the backyard where the balcony was and hurriedly climbed the bed-sheet rope she tied earlier. She reached the top and entered the room. Everything was as she left it; the open window, the book she tossed aside and even the list she made of the guard shifts. Normally the room would be a place of commotion and all these things would be gone. Something was definitely very wrong. She had to find someone, anyone.

Sheeda quietly walked out of the room and into the hallway. Her sore throat suddenly became more painful and she coughed. She felt exactly the same as the time she got sick with the flu a year ago. But rest was out of the question, not until she found out what was going on. She continued and turned a corner and saw the familiar glint of amour. Finally it was a guard, although it looked like he was dozing off. That was pretty typical of the volunteers. She relaxed and walked over.

"Excuse me, but can you te-" Sheeda could not even finish her sentence as she got close enough to see why the guard was slumped over. He was not sleeping but instead had a massive hole through his chest. His spear was missing, probably the weapon that caused this mess. She froze and she fell to her knees, her hands were on the ground to prevent her from completely falling over. It was the first time she saw a person like this.

"Please wake up," she said without making a move. There was a pool of blood and it began to soak her hands, knees and the bottom of her dress. It was sickening, both the sight and smell. She hoped he was still alive, but there was no response. The mans eyes were lifeless and reflected shock.

"..." The girl slowly stood up and continued to weakly walk down the hall. There was nothing she could have done. Everyone else had to be warned about this.

The corridor led to stairs and as she walked down, she could hear her heartbeat match her every step. She knew that up ahead was the throne room, there was somebody always there. Maybe even her father would be there. She reached the bottom step and then cautiously peered in.

She was right. Her father was standing there at the opposite end of the hall. But her heart sunk even lower when she saw that he was surrounded by brutes carrying crude axes and stolen spears from the guards. She couldn't help but notice a large number of bodies laying on the floor both in armour and plainclothes; signs of combat were obvious.

"This was pretty easy," one abnormally large bandit said as he walked around the king. His words echoed against the walls.

Her father just stared back at the man circling him, his eyes didn't show any emotion. They were almost unreadable.

"Of course, that couldn't be all the guards in Talys, let alone the castle," the bandit continued. Sheeda knew the mans reasoning was right, most of the soldiers were indeed somewhere else. That was how her escape was easy earlier.

"Where are they?" The bandit asked.

"Why are you here?" The king asked, ignoring the question.

"Why?" The bandit echoed. "Because, we want Talys."

"You are just a pack of bandits and pirates," the king responded. "You can never take Talys."

"Haha!" The bandit looked away while laughing, then he turned around and punched the king. Sheeda felt her fear turn to anger and she quickly looked around the room for a solution. She then spotted a forgotten lance near a fallen guard. One that a bandit forgot to take.

"Everyone! There should certainly be more guards around," the large bandit bellowed. "Look around the castle, leave no one alive."

The assembly gave a mix of grunts and shouts and they all left in a disorganized fashion out the main doors. Sheeda realized that it was now just her, the bandit and her father. She felt very tired and soreness in her throat became the overwhelming desire to cough. She had to take the opportunity and rush.

"I will make sure you suffer, once the guards are gone the villagers are next," the large bandit said with his back turned. Sheeda immediately ran out, the lance only a few strides away.

She could make it, she could take the lance and force the unaware bandit to surrender. There was only a few more steps left, the girl reached out.

"Sheeda, watch out!" Her father cried out.

The girl looked up and not a moment too soon. The bandit seemed to be already aware of her presence and quickly turned and threw a hand axe, which would have severed her arm if she hadn't pulled it back. But thanks to the warning, she was unharmed and she hoped a few steps back.

She stared at the lance which was now in two pieces with the axe in between. She was careless, if she just stayed calm and tried to sneak up slowly and quietly, she could have made it. But she knew in her condition, it wouldn't have been possible.

"You were a little loud. Do you honestly think you could stop me, little princess?" His tone hinted amusement as he raised another large axe.

She blinked in surprise, the man knew who she was.

"Don't look shocked, I know who you are," he then grinned at Sheeda's father. "Watch as I finally take everything away from you."

"Run," the king said. His expression that was once hardened before now showed desperation. Sheeda took a step back. Why was moving back so easy but moving forward so hard?

The bandit was close. If he took a few more steps, then he would be able to effortlessly strike.

"Please be a good girl and run," the king said more urgently, then after a brief moment he added, "Do as you are told."

The girl winced, her fathers last words seem to sting. The brute raised his axe. She wouldn't let it end like this, as the axe fell she blinked and once again saw her younger self.

"What about my happiness?" The little girl whispered.

"No!" Sheeda opened her eyes and at the last second sidestepped, completely dodging the axe. She then dived and rolled past the bandit. She then picked up the piece of the lance with the sharp iron tip.

The bandit bellowed in fury whirled around in an attempt to strike a second time. But he was too slow, as the girl nimbleness allowed her to drive the sharp fragment into his arm. He then dropped to his knees, screaming in anger as his free hand clutched his arm in pain. The lance was stuck in there pretty well.

Other bandits then ran into the room at the sound of their leaders cries of pain. Some bandits surrounded her father and began to drag him away to another room.

"Dad!" She cried out in dismay.

"Sheeda, go to the Eastern fortress. Get the knights!" The king called back.

"But-"

"The people are in danger. Go now!" Her father cut her off. The girl took a step back, nodded and ran back up the small stairwell.

"Get her!" The injured leader called from behind.

She ran upstairs and back to her room and finally back to the balcony. She then looked down and saw a few bandits waiting below in the backyard. One even started to climb the bed-sheet rope. She could hear angry yelling coming from the hallways behind. It would only be a matter of time before they reached her.

There was nowhere to go but up. She jumped onto the ledge, then she turned so that she was facing the building and jumped. Her hands then caught of the edge of the building, the rough shingles actually preventing her from slipping and falling three stories down. She then pulled herself up and began to run on the roof.

"Ha!" She yelled while making the giant leap from the roof of the courtyard walls. She found it slightly weird that she wanted to run on the roofs and have an easy escape a few hours before. But she never thought it would had ever come to this.

"Stop!" Another voice yelled in anger. Followed by a strange 'whizzing' sound. She looked at the source of the sound and realized it was hand axe. She ran faster, which caused the axe to miss its mark. Their aim was not that bad despite that she had the higher ground.

The town was in danger. She knew her only chance was Artemis who was at the stables. If they made it, they would fly to the Eastern Fortress and get the knights just like her father asked.

Her thoughts were interrupted as the building as she was about to running out of wall to run on and that her next jump would be onto the stable roof. Unfortunately the stables were small being only one story tall, that would mean she would have to make a high drop down. The building was also very far for a regular jump.

She felt her stamina drop due to her fever, but it was now or never. The girl sprinted and made a final running long jump. Her stomach tightened as she was in the air for a few seconds.

Fortunately she made the distance, but unfortunately the stable roof was slanted. The girl hit the roof and rolled down.

The last thing she remembered was the ground quickly approaching her.

* * *

**Authors Notes:** For the laugh, I'm going to leave my quick "notes" from the unedited chapter.

_Argh, my battery laptop has ten minutes of power left. So blah, blah, spelling and grammar. Something about problems with my past and present tense use. Blah, blah might think of getting a beta reader, message if interested. Blah, blah subscibe and review._

LOL. Anyways, if you haven't already realized this was the night before the pirates attacked Talys. Sheeda was quite the athlete, climbing trees, sprinting on roofs and even dodging axes. I find it kind of funny to Sheeda seeing weird dreams/hallucinations. But she took a plunge in a cold garden fountain at night. A reason to get sick. Btw, I left a hidden reference here. I wonder if you guys would be able to find it.

And you heard it, this chapter made me realize how much I need a beta-reader. Message if interested. Like seriously, I switched from past to present tense so many times. Something that annoys a lot of people.

Well, until next time. Read, review and favourite!


	5. The Time to Act

Another weekly addition to the Talys arc. Trying to balance this story with university, got to not slack off and get a 3.9 GPA. Must work hard!

I wonder if I would have a decent social life at the end of all this XD

**Chapter 3 – The Time to Act**

"Mom... please don't go." Sheeda mumbled with her eyes closed. She felt as light a feather, as if she was floating on air. It was another dream, but this time she was in her six year old body instead of watching from a distance like a spectator, or a ghost.

"Honey," it was the voice of her dad, unsure of what to say. She forgot how much different he looked ten years ago, the softer face of a person who was always there for her.

"Dad, wheres mom?" She turned and hugged her father for comfort. Her actions and words where done automatically, as if she was reading off a script. That's right, she remembered. This was the day that everything changed.

"She's gon-" The kings words trailed off, his voice was quivering. All he could do was softly hug his daughter back.

"Dad, why are you crying?" Sheeda asked.

"Nothing," her father quickly wiped away his tears with the sleeve of his royal robe. "No matter what, just follow your dreams, okay?"

Sheeda just stood there with her eyes wide. She wanted to know what her father meant, she wanted to asked her father many questions. But she knew she couldn't. Maybe she would get her chance when she returned to the castle to save him.

* * *

The girls eyes slowly opened and she was amazed to see clouds race past her. She wasn't dead was she? She remembered falling off a roof at a height that would had probably killed her. As she wondered what was going on, she lifted her head only to hear the sound of a Pegasus whining in worry.

"Artemis," she mumbled. That's right, just before she hit the ground, Artemis must have caught her and flew her to safety. She vaguely remembered in horror, flying over the town and watching bandits slowly approach it.

Sheeda slowly adjusted herself on the saddle and realized how easy it was to fall off Artemis. If she tossed and turned in her sleep, then she would have fallen a few hundred feet to her death. Luckily it did not happen. She could not help but notice how terrible she felt, very feverish despite getting a brief moment of rest. Her head felt very hot and her throat was so sore.

It was dawn, the sun peaked over the hills in the horizon straight ahead. Since the sun rises from the east, they were heading in the right direction towards the Eastern fortress. Sheeda watched Artemis flap her long wings, its white feathers glowing with a golden glow from the suns rays and wondered how the creature knew where to go in the first place.

Below was a green plain, the eastern field of Talys, a place far different from the large towns in the west. The expanse of the grasslands were flanked by large farms that stretched as far as the eye could see. Within them were manmade canals that snaked around the field and irrigated the crops. The water came from the fresh springs in the mountains and emptied out to the eastern sea.

Based on their location, the fortress couldn't be more than five minutes of flight time away. In fact the large silhouette was in view in the distance, slightly obscured by a few clouds. The Eastern fortress was originally built to defend the eastern coast of the island less than half a century ago, it could probably garrison a lord and a few hundred knights based on its size. Although it was not as impressive as the castle palace, the hulking building of stone was fortified enough to withstand a siege for a month.

However many considered the expensive building a failed project as most of the island growth occurred on the western shores as that was the side of the island that faced the mainland continent, which allowed for faster, efficient trade. Western towns flourished and in time, the Western Fortress was expanded to become a castle for the royal family. Pirates never raided the eastern area with its small villages and farms since it faced the harsh uncharted eastern sea. In time, it became quiet as the need for soldiers in the east ceased.

However only recently, the fortress was in use once again. Two years ago, a group of refugees arrived on Talys shores, their home completely conquered in a war. Their leader who went by the name of Prince Marth requested the islands aid. The king generously gave use of the Eastern fortress and a lively town was soon built around it. The people questioned the king for housing these strangers. If they were found out, then the small island could be drawn into the war also. But the king calmed the people saying that their neutrality would be maintained.

Sheeda pulled the reins and had Artemis circle around the fortress looking for a suitable landing spot. She could see villagers up early, a few even took the moment to wave at her. The village was huge, it was hard to imagine it was all full of just refugees. She was glad that the people were able to rebuild their lives. But now Talys was in danger, would the Alteans return the favour?

Artemis landed in an area that looked like a courtyard. Her entrance already caught a lot of attention, there was only one Pegasus in Talys after all.

"Sheeda!" A voice called out from some distance away. There were people rushing out the main building. Among the group was a knight in a giant shell of armour and few other men of average height in normal clothes, who looked like they were just woken up. There was also an old looking man, dressed in regal looking clothes. Finally there was Marth, his eyes radiated deep concern beneath a thick fringe of disheveled hair.

"You look as white as a sheet," Marth said. "And your clothes are bloodied. What happened?"

"There are bandits attacking the town," Sheeda replied after she took a deep breath. She had to act calm, she had to provide as much information as possible and not break down to her emotions.

"We will help, of course," he immediately responded. She felt her heart lift, as if some weight was removed.

"Absolutely not!" The old man in the back spoke up.

"What?" Marth replied. Sheeda immediately looked at the elder in shock.

"Malledeus!" One other old looking knight exclaimed. His surprised expression similar to the rest of his companions. It looked like nobody expected that.

"Prince Marth," the old man gently grabbed the boy's shoulders and tugged him away from the group. "Sire, if we launch an attack, especially on the scale that Princess Sheeda has described, then we would draw lots of attention. Dolhr-Grust forces would know that we were hiding in Talys all this time."

Sheeda sighed as she could perfectly hear the man from where she was standing. The experienced tactician was right. These people might be revealing themselves to the very people they were trying to hide from in the first place just by fighting off a group of bandits. She noticed the boy look down, a strange look of pain in his eyes, it looked like he was remembering a memory he wanted to forget. After a few seconds he looked up again.

"You offer wise advice, but we must defend Talys," Marth responded. He then turned to face us. "It is our home too."

"My lord we are knights of Altea, not Talys," the tactician replied.

"We have a debt to these people and I don't want any more regrets," Marth then smiled. "We must do what we have to do. We will save those in need."

The small crowd cheered. Sheeda was very much surprised on how the conversation was quickly turned around. There was a small period of silence as everybody turned to see the senior's response.

"As you command sire," Malledus said. "Gather everyone. We will plan an attack immediately." As everybody turned to leave, the old man shot a glare at her and then walked away.

* * *

The plan was simple, the Altean knights and any other foot soldiers were sent to protect the villages and towns close by. The main town and castle which was in immediate danger and furthest away had all the cavaliers sent to it. Hopefully the speed of mounted knights on horses would allow them to rescue everyone in time. It was common knowledge that infantry was at a huge disadvantage to cavaliers who generally had the height and speed advantage. Hopefully a quick, organized charge would end it all.

Still Sheeda couldn't help but feel nervous. She tightly gripped her slim lance as hard as could. She grabbed it back at the eastern fortress before they left. She was not armoured, she didn't have any protection at all. If she was caught in combat, she would have to rely on what she learned in her lessons and use her speed to an advantage.

"Are you okay my lady?" A man brought his horse next to her and Artemis. He wore decorated armour and based on his composure, he looked to be a paladin. Few veteran cavaliers rose to the high prestigious title of paladin.

"Yes," Sheeda replied, trying to hide her hoarse voice due to her sore throat. Artemis was not flying and instead galloped with the rest of the horses. There was no way she would be sent off the battlefield. She had to save her father.

"You are in no condition to fight," he responded in a gruff, yet gentle voice.

"Thank you, but I intend to stay. I have something that must be done," she paused wondering how to address him. "Sir?"

"Jeigan," the paladin finished for her. "I am Sir Jeigan."

"Oh alright, Sir Jeigan..." Sheeda trailed off.

"Your attitude is almost like Prince Marth's," said Jeigan.

"Hm?" She did not see what he was trying to get at. His expression was hidden under his elaborate helmet. He made no readable gestures since he carried a crested shield and a long silver lance.

"A few years ago, Prince Marth was in a situation like yours," he answered. "Although he didn't have the opportunity to save those he cared about back then."

Sheeda nodded, intrigued. Marth was not with them at the moment since he was not combat effective while on a horse. Then again, the way she was sick right now, neither was she.

"On the other hand, today you have that opportunity," Jeigan continued. "I have no intention of taking that away from you."

"Thank you Sir Jeigan," Sheeda replied, relieved.

"Just remember, we will protect you with our lives. Now prepare yourself, the town is just ahead."

The girl watched as the paladin rode away with his lance raised. He was a good person, she thought. Definitely like a father. She bet that he was definitely important to Marth.

"Prepare to charge!" Jeigan yelled over the galloping as the group significantly increase their speed. Other cavaliers began to form behind him in a line. It made sense since they had to go through cobblestone streets.

Sheeda gently pulled the reins to get Artemis to climb to the sky. High enough to hover over the buildings but low enough to communicate and help the knights. She could see some smoke rising from the town looming ahead, it looked like the destruction and looting just started.

"Charge!" The command was issued.

Knights below had already passed through the destroyed gates and already slain a few enemies. Every now and then, some would break off from formation to take a new street, so that every part of the town was covered. After a while, the main group of cavaliers met a large group of bandits in the town square. The bandits were hardly prepared and were trampled by some of the horses. There were a few stragglers who managed to take shelter on the sides of the buildings and alleys.

Suddenly a few bandits jumped out of a building and into Jeigan's blind spot.

"Sir Jeigan!" She yelled. "Behind you!"

It seemed like he already knew they were they because he immediately turned around and quickly dispatched them. Artemis suddenly neighed in a panic. It seemed that her yelling attracted attention. A man was on the roof of a two story house ready to throw a hand axe. Instinctively she pulled the reins and Artemis jerked to the side and barely dodged the twirling launched hatchet.

"Tsk…." She gritted her teeth as she nearly lost her balance, the sooner this was over, the better.

"What are you doing?" The first man yelled in a low voice. "Throw another one!"

"But... but..." His companion looked terrified. "She's just a kid!"

"Shut up and do what I tell you." The first man yelled.

She shook her head and noticed they were not focused on her. She then took the opportunity to circle to the other end of the building, lowering to the first story to hide from their line of sight. She remembered the second bandit's expression of fear, which was nothing like how she imagined bandits to be. Still, they were dangerous, perhaps she could disarm them by flying back up and surprising them.

"Where the hell did she go?"

Sheeda tightened the grip on her lance preparing to get Artemis to rise and attack. "Here we go..." Suddenly her throat started to explode with pain and she coughed hard. She looked up to the roof and realized the two men ran to the edge, obviously now aware of her presence and ready to rain axes down she was wide open...

"Throw it now!" The man with the low voice yelled.

But his companion didn't move an inch. Sheeda didn't know what was going through his head right now. But he wasn't moving. She suddenly grabbed the reins in order to steer her and Artemis to safety.

"Useless cur-!" The man grabbed the axe away from the companion and raised it in order to attack.

She wasn't going to make it. Even if Artemis was fast, she would still have to give one large flap to accelerate away. The axe would definitely be thrown and hit by then. She just stared at my attacker, hoping he would miss.

But he didn't throw, instead he dropped his axe, his face seemingly reflecting pain. Something just plunged into one of his legs. It was a short iron sword! That was a one in a million shot because normally swords were not accurately thrown.

"Marth!" She yelled in relief, turning to see the prince draw out a more elaborate rapier. How did he get here so fast?

"Your welcome!" He gave a smirk.

She smiled and then looked back at the bandits. The injured man fell off the roof, but was saved by his terrified companion, who caught him in time and was using all his effort just to keep him up. How ironic...

Suddenly a piercing scream was heard in the distance.

"C'mon Artemis!" She wheeled around and they flew off.

"Sheeda! Wait!" Marth yelled from behind.

But she didn't stop. Instead she flew down the road for at least two blocks until she heard the scream again from a nearby alleyway. She pulled the reins to get Artemis to stop at it. Down the alley was a bandit, slowly walking towards something on the ground with a vicious looking axe. Sheeda focused her eyes and noticed that the thing on the ground was a little girl!

"Stop!" Was he really going to attack her?

"Hmm?" The gruff bandit turned around and then gave a nasty grin. There was a terrible wound on his arm...

Sheeda froze as she immediately realized who it was. But she wouldn't back down, she couldn't reach the little girl with a Pegasus because of the narrow alley, so she dismounted and almost immediately regretted her decision. Her fever was getting worse and made her feel weak and lightheaded, she stumbled as she made contact with the ground.

"It looks like something even better has come to entertain me," the man said mockingly. His tone made a strange fit with his massive iron axe.

"Entertain?" Sheeda asked while using her lance to hoist herself up. She had to reach and protect the child.

The bandit got closer. His axe was not double headed and he could only use one hand. But still, one chop was strong enough to sever a limb. She could see her reflection on the polished iron surface as he slowly got closer and closer. Suddenly the man dashed forward to deliver the first strike.

It was a vertical swing. But his weapon was heavy and slow, and she easily hopped back. Knowing that it would take him time to raise his heavy axe again, she countered and thrusted her lance at his good arm. But at the last moment, the bandit twisted his body and the lance tip missed.

"Trying not to kill me and disarm me instead." He looked at her with a cold expression. "How sweet of you, but that kind of attitude is going to get you killed."

His axe rose again and this time he swung wildly back and forth with continuous blows. His short swings left little openings as he would follow up quickly with another quick attack. She could only keep hopping back waiting for him to mess up. It seemed like although she couldn't reach the child, she was drawing the bandit away from her. Suddenly her back hit a wall. There was no more room to jump away! Her eyes widened as she watched the bandit make an extra effort in his next sweeping swing.

At the last moment Sheeda ducked and the axe head harmlessly arced over her, cutting into the wood building. The man used his free arm to shield his face from the flying splinters. This was her chance to counter, but he was too close! There was no room to extend her lance and make a solid thrust. Thus she decided to swing her weapon like a club.

But just in time he raised his arm and blocked the blow, avoiding a direct hit. A nasty bruise formed on his wrist. Sheeda stared into her opponents eyes as they stood in a stalemate. She had to pull back her lance in order to attack again, while he had to pull out his axe lodged in the wall.

"You are pretty good," the brute said.

"Why are you doing this?" Sheeda asked.

The man sighed and then decided to share his story. "I was a soldier to Talys. I believed I would be loyal to this land forever. But this land betrayed me. Your father took everything from me. Everything! I'm just here to return the favour..." he trailed off.

"Revenge. Can't you try living honestly?"

"You think we haven't tried?" His voice now rose in irritation. "Wake up girl! We tried our best to live and were forced to resort to this."

"No you haven't tried your best. Especially when preying on others." Sheeda pulled her weapon away from his grip and came in for an overhead swing. He couldn't block this, even with his bare hands. She could easy bash his head and knock him out.

The bandit stepped to the side, her lance just swung at empty air. Sheeda blinked in surprise, she was slowing down! The bandit let go of his axe in order to dodge the blow. He then kicked the tip of her lance away, throwing her off balance. She looked over to see that the bandit had stepped forward again and ripped the axe out of the building ready to deliver another strike.

He was too close. Sheeda stumbled back and in a desperate attempt and raised her weapon with both hands hoping it would stop his attack. It did not... The axe head ripped through the slim pole and barely missed her body. She was left with two pieces of wood in her hands, the force was so strong that she was knocked back into a wall.

"Ugh!" She struggled to get back up.

"You shouldn't fight while you're sick princess?" His mocking tone returned as his axe pointed towards her face. Was this the end?

"_I wouldn't do that if I were you,_" that voice... Could it be?

Ogma! She looked up to see a man with a battle scarred face. He wore leather armour and was holding a large double-edged sword to the bandit's neck.

"Damn," the bandit replied. "I could anticipate the Alteans coming, but I didn't know you guys would be back with reinforcements so soon."

"Theres a lot of things you don't know," Ogma replied coolly.

Sheeda watched as the bandit tightened his grip on this axe handle.

"Don't try it," one of the Talys soldiers in the back said.

There was silence for a few seconds. The bandit slowly grinned, closed his eyes and twirled around raising his axe. Then there was silence again, only to be broken by his body hitting the ground, a fresh slit mark at his throat.

"He used to be a good soldier," Ogma said in a solemn tone. He then walked over to her. "Are you okay Princess?"

She gasped and nodded.

"Don't worry, we have a few healers here. You're going to be okay." Ogma continued. "Now we are going to take back the castle.."

She nodded again and started to get up.

"Where do you think you're going? Sit down and rest." Ogma said sternly.

"What?" She said in surprise, finally managing to form a word, but still breathless. "I have to save them, my father."

"We are here now," Ogma replied. "You have us to depend on. Don't shoulder this burden on your own."

"But I didn't do anything!" Sheeda protested weakly.

"Not true," he then motioned to the alleyway pointing to a little girl with a couple that could only be her parents. They were all in a tight embrace. Wait, that was the child from before?

"If it wasn't for you then she might have not been saved." Ogma smiled.

The girl waved and smiled happily. Sheeda leaned back against the wall and relaxed before smiling back. Maybe she did accomplish something today. She made a difference.

"Princess?" Ogma asked, his voice very faint.

"Sheeda!" Her name was called this time by another voice. Was that Marth? She couldn't see who it was or formulate a response. The world was spinning around.

"Whats happening?" Another voice yelled.

"Wrys! Get over here!" Some other name was called. The voices were getting fainter and everyone started to look like blurs.

She was just very tired. There was a faint, soothing blue light that started to hover over her, most likely a healing staff. "Its... bad... fever...," she couldn't barely hear them anymore.

"Your goin... to be okay," were the last words she heard before she slipped into unconsciousness. Of course she was going to be okay, she still had many things to do. Somehow among it all, she finally realized what dream she wanted to chase.

* * *

**Authors Notes:** This turned out pretty nicely. I really hope I can start to write fluent, exciting combat scenes from now on. I guess this is a start. Guess Sheeda didn't know much about the weapons triangle. Just kidding, of course she does but she is only good with lances for the time being and she did pretty well considering her opponent was a boss level bandit. Of course this would never happen if you played merciless mode in the game.

If you haven't noticed, this is level 1 to the game (ignoring the tutorial). As I mentioned, merciless mode is unforgiving, you can't even rush forward without putting someone at high risk. It is easier to stay back and bait every bandit in one at a time. Strange since the villages won't be rescued. In fact one village was destroyed in the game in this level, there is no way to save it :(

Hurray for Sheeda having another delusion due to her fever. But hey it fits, maybe I will do it one more time in the next chapter, but thats it. I don't want to overuse it.

Anyways thats it for this week. Review and favourite!


	6. Precious Things

A chapter that should had been done many months ago, but alas my procrastination skills get me every time. Also although it may be 12 days late, happy 2011 everyone.

Greener223 – I'm just using the names based off FF's character search list.

Alright, another chapter.

**Chapter 4 – Precious Things**

"I hope she's doing alright," one woman said to her friend as she quietly opened the door to the dark bedroom. Her face bore a worried expression of concern. "She's been in bed for four whole days."

"The girl is fine," the other replied in a strong Talys accent. She then picked up a basket of clean laundry and proceeded inside.

"Really?" The former asked, while picking her own basket up filled with cleaning tools. "She went into battle with a horrible fever, I heard she didn't even sleep!"

"You obviously have not been in this job long enough," she said while taking the moment to flaunt her seniors badge on her maid uniform.

"He... hey. You didn't just make that up, did you?"

"This is real!" Her friend fumed.

"Shh...," she replied as she glanced to the nearby bed in fear. A large lump under the heavy blankets indicated a sleeping figure. "She might actually be listening to us right now."

"Don't worry," her friend replied, but she still lowered her voice to a quitter volume. "Anyways, as I was saying. If you have been working here long enough, you would know that our princess is an energetic girl. She will be fine and be back to the usual."

"The usual?" She echoed, as she pulled out a dusting feather and started to clean a bookshelf.

"Yes, a clever girl," her friend replied as she placed the clean laundry in the oak drawers. "She always manages to get me in trouble one way or another? Many a time, she disappears when I am supposed to be watching her."

"Sounds quite the handful."

"I know, I would be talking to my friends or reading and she would simply vanish.."

"Um..., that sounds like your fault," she said quietly, knowing her friend wouldn't hear.

"What would the others say about me?"

"I don't kn-"

"If this keeps happening over and over, I might lose my badge," her friend exclaimed in a tone of self pity as a tear comedically fell down her face.

"What a nightmare," she once again said quietly, with a hint of sarcasm.

"But this all ends today," her friend replied, a passionate fire suddenly blazing in her eyes. "It is time to wake 'you know who' for her medicine?"

"Huh? Is that supposed to be punishment or something?"

Her friend nodded her head as she marched to the bed and pulled out a vial from her apron pocket, revealing a nasty, green sludge like fluid.

"Ugh...," she gagged as even with it sealed, did it give off a putrid odour. "Isn't she supposed to receive the red medicine?" She asked as she walked to her friends side in curiosity.

"You're making it sound like I'm trying to poison her. My homemade recipe is better quality than the pharmacy."

"You are enjoying this aren't you?" She replied as she noticed an evil grin form on her friends lips.

"Sheeda it's time for your medicine!" The maid yelled with enthusiasm as she whipped off the covers, only to find a bunch of pillows under the sheet, neatly organized to look like there was someone in bed.

"Hah, looks like shes fooled- Mmhf!" She laughed before her face was met by a thrown pillow.

Without the two maids noticing, a familiar figure was hiding behind the bookcase. A smile formed on her face as she watched one angry maid whip a pillow into the others face. With the two distracted, the girl quietly slipped out of the bedroom in a stealthy, fluid movement. It was finally nice to be out and fully awake, especially since it was the grouch (her nickname for a certain maid) trying to take care of her. For the past four days, all she could remember was being fatigued, sweaty and passing in and out of consciousness. But all bad fevers were like that right?

The girl then ran down the hall until she came to a large window with a great vantage point to the town. She sighed as she felt the warm sun. She could see the vibrant green trees that surrounded the many white marble houses. There was no longer the smell of burning debris, but instead the familiar salty, sea wind. Instead of screams, there was just the bustling about of lively people with their businesses. It was as if the bandit incident never happened.

"Princess Sheeda" a familiar voice greeted.

"Hello Ogma," she replied and turned to face the captain of the guard. She noticed a few familiar faces, such as the few guards who had a party on that night, it was good to see that they were well.

"Are you feeling better princess?" Ogma asked.

"Yes, thanks for asking," Sheeda replied. "By the way is father well?"

"He is princess, in fact he is at the farewell address right now."

"Farewell address?" Sheeda echoed, she never recalled hearing this before.

"Yes princess. It is for the Alteans, a ceremony in the grand hall to thank them for saving the towns from the bandits. In fact they even helped rebuild, I don't know where we would be without them, it is too bad they are leaving soon."

"Eh?" The girl gasped in surprise.

"There is going to be a celebration afterwards," one pf the soldiers pipped in. "Its like a new national holiday with feasts and late night parties and drinking!"

"Where?" Sheeda asked.

"Same place you found us, the barracks in the castle walls," the soldier replied.

"No not the party, I mean the farewell address. Where is it being held?"

"In the grand hall-"

"Thanks!" Sheeda yelled as she already ran off.

"Same as always," Ogma said as he shook his head.

* * *

It was not hard to get in the grand hall unnoticed. It seemed as though the ceremony just finished, as the crowd began to roar in applause. A part of her was thankful as she did not have to listen to a long speech. Her eyes focused at the front of the room, there were the knights of Altea and on the throne was her father. For a second her mind flashed back to that awful time when ruthless bandits held him with a knife at his throat, but that was over now.

"And now let the celebrations begin!" Said the king as he stood up.

The crowd cheered even louder and people began to file out the door. Some people took notice of her. "Princess Sheeda, it is great to see you well."

"Ah, thank you," she replied to the noble as she continued to focus at the front. It seemed the knights were leaving as well.

"It's thanks to the Altean's we were saved," said another stranger, maybe a scholar.

"Ah... yes," she replied. The people in front of her began to have a conversation as she lost herself to her thoughts. It was great that everybody was so accepting now. Two years ago, the people were in an uproar at the Alteans arrival, thinking that they would be a source of violence and war. It took her a lot of effort just to convince a few people to open up to them at the time.

Just then she noticed that two people stayed still at the front of the room as the rest were in a hurry to leave. In curiosity, Sheeda excused herself from the group and ran to the side hidden behind a large pillar and waited. Eventually after some time the crowd left leaving the once noisy room rather silent. The king then motioned the guards, who in turn left the room as well.

It was just the two left.

"Lad, I like to personally thank you," said the king. "You have saved us."

"No," Marth replied humbly. "It is you who saved our people first."

The king stood there in silence. Sheeda couldn't see his expression since the king was facing away, it was as if he was in thought.

"You are truly ready. If you wish to seek out allies in Aurelis, I will give you what soldiers I can to see you arrive there safely."

"Your Majesty," Marth tried to say something.

"Captain Ogma is a fine swordsman, brave and true. I know he and his fighters will serve you well," the king continued. "Another thing... During your travels, you are certain to meet many of despise Dolhr. Some may be hiding, others may be captured of forced to fight against their will or better judgement. It falls upon you to find these individuals and win them over to your cause. Understand lad?"

Marth stood there silent. He then looked up with strong eyes and nodded.

"Then go!" The king replied in acknowledgement. "The time has come! Be patient, steady, strong; I know you will do great things."

The boy respectfully bowed and then walked out of the hall, his footsteps echoing before the doors closed behind him. Sheeda felt her heart tighten as the doors slammed, they were really leaving after all.

"Sheeda?" Her father called out, his back still to her.

In surprise, the girl leaned with against the pillar and she held her breath. How did she give herself away?

"I know you are there," her father said.

A brief moment passed. It felt like she stayed silent long enough, he would forget about her. But as the seconds passed she knew it was futile to just stay put and she walked out of the cover of the pillar. "How?"

"You are my daughter, I know you too well. Of course I would know if you are there," he said as he turned to face her wearing a cold expression.

"If you know me too well," Sheeda's tried to match her expression with his. "Do you know what I am going to ask?"

"That you want to join the Altean's on their quest?"

The girl stared back into her father's eyes. He really knew, didn't he?

"My answer is yes," the king said calmly with an unreadable expression.

She flinched in shock as she heard those words. "Wait, what?" Sheeda cried out in surprise.

"Yes," her father repeated.

"What? No... You are supposed to say no!" She cried.

The king stared back. He was still calm and remained silent.

"What happened to warning me of the dangers to come? Or telling me that my studies are useless if I go?" She was hardly aware her voice was rising. "Most fathers wouldn't even allow their daughters out of town."

Her father said nothing; the once calming silence suddenly caused the environment to become unnerving and eerie.

"You are...," she continued to yell. "You are supposed to protect me; you are supposed to show that you care. Yet you are always like this, you always push me away! Don't you love me?" She looked down, away from the gaze of her father; her mind was in a mess. What was she doing? Of course, she wanted him to say yes; of course she knew her father loved her. Yet, a part of her wanted him to know-"

"Your feelings?" Her father suddenly asked. His words finishing what her thoughts were trying to say. He then walked up to her.

"Wh- what?" Sheeda replied, her voice quivering. It was as if he knew. But that was impossible.

"I understand them," he continued, as he wiped a single tear off her cheek, one that she did not even notice. "But I lost mine long ago. That's why-," but he went silent.

Sheeda looked up in surprise. That's why what?

"Follow me," her father said as he turned and began to walk away. Exiting the doors, passing the guards who saluted him.

The two were silent as they travelled through the castle. Sheeda had nothing to say, if she could say anything at all. A part of her was thankful, that they never ran into anyone to diffuse this situation even with a celebrating crowd. She had to know what her father was hiding.

Finally, they arrived to a door. It was a room, one that Sheeda noticed was always locked, one she had never been able to get into before. In the past attempts, no one ever had a key despite her search nor was there a window to get into.

"We are here," she said as he pulled out an old, yet complex looking key and unlocked the door. The girl frowned as she saw it, must have been the only one. "Grab that torch; it will be dark."

Sheeda obeyed pulling the warm source of light off the wall in the hallway. She then entered and curiously looked into the room and couldn't believe her eyes. Although the room was modest in size, it was filled with strange mysterious items. There were several bookshelves, almost like the library in town. As she walked through, several titles caught her eye such as, 'Intro to Anima Magic,' 'A History of the Dragon Tribe' and 'The Legend of Anri.' These books couldn't be found in Talys, to build a collection like this would have required a trip around the world.

The girl then navigated to the other half of the room, which had weapons and armours on display. She walked to a strangely designed spear with elaborate ribbons flowing out from it, giving the weapon the image that it had wings. The insignia of Medon was finely etched into the metal; it was a foreign produced item. Why did her father have all this stuff?

It was a strange feeling, when curiosity washed away all her anger in a matter of minutes. She then walked back to the entrance of the room when one final item of interest caught her eye over the unlit stone fireplace. It was a large portrait on the wall in colour, probably made by a skilled artist. In it, there were three figures. But it was too dim to tell.

She decided to throw the torch into the fireplace, which burned the wood resting there for who knows how long? The whole room illuminated and the girl gasped as her eyes then rested on the picture. It was obvious who the male was, but the female was vaguely familiar. She was holding a sleeping, peaceful baby.

"The life that your mother and I had in the past, we were truly happy," her father spoke up. He still stood at the entrance of the door, refusing to go in. "When she disappeared from my life, I lost everything."

Sheeda continued to stare at her mother's image. There she was with her pale complexion, blue-lilac coloured hair, bright eyes full of life and a warm smile. It was almost a perfect match of her reflection whenever she looked onto the water on the sea. However, even with the resemblance it was if she was still staring at a new person.

"I...," tears began to fall down the girl's cheeks again. "Forgotten what my mother looked like." She continued to stare at the portrait.

A few more minutes of silence passed.

"I'm sorry," her father finally said. "For my neglect for you not just with the bandits, but all these years. I pushed you away because thought that I was protecting you."

"It's okay," Sheeda sniffed, she already forgiven him long ago. "Hehe... you looked so different back then."

"I will take that as a compliment," her father replied with a huff.

"You should," Sheeda replied.

"Your mother was from Medon," said her father. "We loved to travel the world and have adventures together."

Medon? Wasn't that the cold mountain region on the mainland? Perhaps her lineage explained the reason why she burned easily under the hot climate, or why she looked so different compared to the villagers. "How did you two end up on Talys then?"

"That was long ago. It was turbulent times and your mother and I decided to help those oppressed. Before you know it there was quite a crowd following us, who wanted nothing to do with wars," her father recalled as he leaned against the door with his arms crossed.

"And that's how Talys was created?" Sheeda asked.

"Yes," he replied. Silence ensued as the girl turned back to the photo and was entranced by it once more.

Once upon a time, this room was filled with memories. Now it only held pains and despair. Things certainly had to change.

"I think I understand what you meant long ago," Sheeda said, finally breaking the silence.

"Hm?" Her father asked.

"The day mom died," Sheeda replied. "You told me to follow my dreams. That's why today you allowed me to go."

"Yes, that's right. This is the one time where I won't hold you back," her father said with a serious tone, before giving that warm, familiar yet silly smile.

"Thank you..." Sheeda said as she turned and smiled back.

* * *

**Authors Notes: **Sheeda's mother was never mentioned in the game, but in the manga she was present. However for the sake of this story, we will say she is gone. I wanted her origins are Medon, to explain how Sheeda may have got her hands on a pegasus or be similar in appearances to people like Catria/Katua. Then again this type of logic is a bit contradicting since Est and Palla who are siblings have pink and green hair.

By the way, Sheeda found the wing spear. Do you have a feeling she would take a few items from her dad's storage room? Heck yea! It sort of bothers me to how her dad let her go without a word in game, but gives Marth a one sided speech. So this chapter was created to explain it.

Felt like something could had been done better? Review!


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